Reverberating liquid discharge device

ABSTRACT

A liquid discharge device having no moving parts which inherently reverberates and pulsates liquid being discharged therefrom, is especially adapted to provide unusually precise control over the degree and extent of the reverberation and pulsation as well as over the nature and extent of the discharge pattern.

United States Patent Hruby, Jr.

[54] REVERBERATING LIQUID DISCHARGE DEVICE [72] Inventor: John O. Hruby, Jr., Burbank, Calif.

[73] Assignee: Rain Jet Corp., Burbank, Calif.

[22] Filed: June 15, 1970 [21] Appl. No.: 46,400 7 Related US. Application Data [63] Continuation-impart of Ser. No. 686,410, Nov. 2

1967, Pat. No. 3,547,351.

[52] US. Cl. ...239/10l, 239/D1G. 16, 239/598 [51] Int. Cl ..BOSb 1/08 [58] Field of Search ..239/101, 17, 22, 23, 590, 598,

' 239/599, 601, DIG. 16

[56] References Cited [15] 3,643,866 Feb. 22, 1972 3,072,346 1/ 1963 Wahlin et al ..239/60l X 1,078,726 1/1912 Fisher ....239/598 X 2,548,788 4/1951 Helme ....239/55O X 3,082,961 3/1963 Hruby, Jr. ..239/598 3,392,921 7/1968 Demaison ...,239/598 X 3,547,351 12/1970 Hruby, .lr..... ..239/338 Primary Examiner-Allen N. Knowles Assistant Examiner-John J. Love Attorney-Christie, Parker & Hale I ABSTRACT A liquid discharge device having no moving parts which inherently reverberates and pulsates liquid being discharged therefrom, is especially adapted to provide unusually precise control over the degree and extent of the reverberation and pulsation as well as over the nature and extent of the discharge pattern.

3 Claims, 15 Drawing Figures REVERBERATING LIQUID DISCHARGE DEVICE CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application is a continuation-in-part of copending U.S. Pat. No. 3,547,351 issued Dec. 5, 1970, and owned by the assignee of the present invention.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention This invention relates to liquid discharge devices of the type having no moving parts and which reverberate and pulsate the liquid within the device to produce a discharge of discrete droplets.

2. Description of the Prior Art Liquid discharge devices which inherently cause a reverberating and pulsating effect to liquid discharge therefrom are known; see my prior U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,082,961 and 3,341,133, both assigned to theassignee of the present invention, and see U.S. Pat. No. 3,301,493 to W. W. Frempter also assigned to the assignee of the present invention.

The structure which is common to these three patents achieves liquid reverberation in a nozzle having a body defining an inner chamber having ends spaced apart by the length of the chamber. An inlet opening is defined substantially at one end of the chamber and has an effective area substantially less than the mean transverse cross-sectional area of the chamber. An outlet opening is defined through the body laterally of the chamber to have a minimum effective area which is greater than the maximum effective area of the inlet opening. It is the area of the inlet opening relative to the chamber and the area of the outlet opening relative to the inlet opening, in combination with the volume and configuration of the chamber which provides the reverberating effect. The reverberation effect operates upon liquid in the chamber to produce a liquid discharge which is comprised of discrete droplets which are expelled through the outlet opening along paths which vary randomly within wide limits with the reverberation effect. Heretofore, the reverberation effect and discharge pattern of a reverberation nozzle of given configuration could not be varied or adjusted.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides a reverberating liquid discharge in which the degree of reverberation, as well as the nature and extent of the discharge pattern, arevariable as desired. This feature is particularly desirable in liquid discharge devices of this type since such devices are often used in groups to define ornamental fountain arrangements. Where such devices are in groups in fountains, it is desirable that the performance of any one device harmonize with the performance of the other devices in the group. Since the liquid ducting to which the devices, used as a fountain, are connected is often provided by someone other than the supplier of the devices, and since such ducting may have small effect on the performance of the devices, it is desirable to adjust the device upon installation in the fountain rather than return the device to the supplier for adjustment or balancing on a ducting system which may be different from the fountain ducting system. I

Reverberating liquid discharge devices are also useful in industrial applications where a variety of liquid may be applied from time to time to the device. Adjustability of the performance characteristics of the device is advantageous where the properties of the liquid applied to the device are variable.

The apparatus according to the present invention consists primarily in an improvement over my U.S. Pat. No. 3,547,351. Specifically, the disclosure in that application taught that an outlet tube can be mounted concentric with an aperture defined through the tube body laterally of the tube chamber in order to provide direction to the discharged droplets. The

present invention specifically recognizes such structure, but

for a different purpose, i.e., control over the degree of reverberation and nature of the discharge pattern. The outlet tube,

according to the present invention can also have one open end thereof disposed through the aperture and within the chamber itself. It was discovered that if the position of the outlet tube is varied within the body aperture and relative to the longitudinal axis of the chamber, the degree of reverberation, as well as the nature and extent of the discharge pattern, is also varied.

As shown in the prior art patents described above, a solid plug closes the body tube at one end of the body. Additionally, an inlet plug is disposed in the body tube at its other end, the reverberation chamber being defined between the plugs.

In a further aspect of the invention, it is now recognized that precise and unusually fine adjustments in reverberation and the discharge pattern can be achieved by any of three adjustments in combination with, or apart from varying the position of the outlet tube in the body, relative to the longitudinal axis of the chamber; these adjustments are:

l. adjusting the position of the solid plug along the longitudinal axis of the chamber; 2. adjusting the position of the inlet plug along the longitudinal axis of the chamber; and A 3. adjusting the circumferential position of the inlet opening through the inlet plug about the longitudinal axis of the chamber and relative to the aperture in which the outlet tube is fitted.

Thus, any desired degree of reverberation can be achieved, and any desired discharge pattern within the range achievable by the device can be obtained, by varying one or more of the relations reviewed above.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THEIDR'AWING The above-mentioned and other features of the invention are more clearly described in the following detailed description of the invention, which description is presented with reference to the accompanying drawing in which:

FIG. 1 is a cross section elevation view of a prior art reverberating liquid discharge device;

FIG. 2 is a cross section view taken along line 22 in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a view taken along line 33 of FIG. 1; FIGS. 4-7 show other operable configurations of the aperture shown in FIG. 3; I

FIG. 8 is a cross section view taken along line8-8 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 9 is a cross section elevation view of a presently preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 10 is a view taken along line 1010 in FIG. 9;

FIG. 11 is a view taken along line ll1l in FIG. 9;

FIG. 12 is a cross section elevation view of another device according to the present invention;

FIG. 13 is a view taken along lines l313 of FIG. 12; and

FIGS. 14 and 15 are elevation views of other outlet tubes operable in the devices shown in FIGS. 9 and 12.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A prior art reverberation liquid discharge device 10, in general accord with my prior patents, is shown in FIG. land has a tubular body 12 of cylindrical configuration, such as, but not confined to, a right-circular cylinder. Body 12 is hollow, thereby defining an inner chamber 14, and has opposite ends 16 and 18. An inlet plug 20 is disposed at body end 16 to close the body tube but for an inlet opening 22 which, as shown in FIG. 2, is formed through plug 20 into chamber ,14. The precise shape of inlet opening 22 is not critical to the reverberation phenomena produced in the device; what is important is that inlet opening 22 has an effective cross-sectional area which is greater than that of an outlet opening 24 of the device and is substantially less than the mean transverse area i opening 24 is not critical for reverberation to occur. It is important that the effective cross-sectional area of opening 24 is greater than that ofinlet opening 22. Furthermore, the precise location of outlet opening 24 along body 12 is not critical as long as it is laterally through body 12 and between the ends of the chamber. Variations in the position of outlet opening 22 along the body will produce variations in the degree of reverberation, however.

A solid plug 26 is disposed in body tube 12 at its end 18 and closes such end. Thus, fluid entering inlet opening 22 passes into chamber 14 and out through outlet opening 24. It is the fact that outlet opening 24 has a greater cross-sectional area than that of inlet opening 22, coupled with the fact that the outlet opening is located in the lateral side of the chamber and not precisely at one end thereof, that results in the desired reverberation and pulsation phenomena.

FIGS. 3-7 illustrate some of the various configurations which outlet opening 22 may have in device 10, as well as in devices according to the present invention as described below. FIG. 8 is a cross section view which shows that solid plug 26 effectively closes end 18 of body tube 12 in device 10.

A reverberating liquid discharge device 28 according to the present invention is shown in FIG. 9. As in the case of device 10, device 28 has a cylindrical tubular body 30 (preferably a right circularly cylindrical tube) defining a chamber 32 and having open ends 34 and 36. An inlet plug 38, defining an inlet opening 39, is matingly disposed in chamber 32 substantially at open end 34 of the body tube. Plug 38 is identical to inlet plug of the prior art and may define inlet openings of various shapes as in the case with device 10. The only criteria for plug 38 is that it have an effective inlet opening area substantially less than the means transverse cross-sectional area of the chamber. Additionally, a solid plug 40 is matingly disposed in chamber 32 at the end 36 of body tube to close the same. An aperture 42 is defined laterally through the body in a manner akin to outlet opening 24 of the prior art device. In other words, aperture 42 is located closer to end 36 than to end 34 and may have any of a variety of shaped and sizes.

An outlet tube 44 has a principal outer surface 46 and a minor outer surface 48 which, relative to surface 46, defines an axial flange 47 extending away from a circumferential shoulder 49 which defines a step in the outer surface of the tube between surfaces 46 and 48. Flange 47 is snugly but movably disposed through aperture 42 into chamber 32. Tube 44 is thus concentric with aperture 42 and has a funnel-shaped axial bore 50 having an inner end 52 (toward chamber 32) of lesser diameter than its outer end 54. The inner end of tube 44 is located within chamber 32.

Bore 50 defines the outlet opening of device 28 from chamber 32 to the exterior of the device. The precise shape of bore 50 is not critical, but may be of other configurations such as those shown at 50a-50c in FIGS. 12-15; FIGS. 10-11 showing other views of outlet plug 44. Bore 50, shown in FIG. 9, has a throat portion 51 adjacent base end 52 which is of constant cross-sectional area, outwardly from which the bore increases regularly in area to end 54. The purpose of the tapered bore is to provide a better, cleaner, sharper and more coherent pattern. In other words, increased directional control is obtained by the tapered effect to bore 50.

It is important in the devices of FIGS. 9 and 12, as with the prior art, that the effective cross-sectional area of outlet opening 50 (or 50a, 50b, or 50c) from chamber 32 to the exterior of body 30 to be greater than the effective cross-sectional area of inlet opening 39 to chamber 32.

The present reverberation discharge nozzle shown in FIGS. 9 and 12, enables unusually precise and fine adjustments to be made to the degree of reverberation produced in use of the nozzle and to the nature and extent of the liquid discharge pattern. Through experimentation, it has been found that as the outlet plug 54 is adjusted laterally of body 30 (i.e.. axially in aperture 42) relative to the longitudinal axis 56 of chamber 32, the degree of reverberation varies. Coupling this adjustment with any of the following adjustments, unusually fine reverberation variances are obtainable: l) adjusting the position of inlet plug 38 along longitudinal axis 56; (2) adjusting the position of solid plug 40 along longitudinal axis 56; and (3) adjusting the position of inlet opening 39 about longitudinal axis 56 (compare FIGS. 9 and 12). These three adjustments preferably are fixed into a device according to this invention by the manufacturer of the device, but outlet tube 44 is movable axially in aperture 42 to provide very fine adjustments to be made by the user of the device as desired.

Thus, by adjusting inlet plug 38 along the longitudinal axis of the chamber, or by moving inlet opening 39 circumferentially about the longitudinal axis, or by moving solid plug 40 along the longitudinal axis, or outlet tube 44 laterally relative to the longitudinal axis of the chamber, or by any combination of these adjustments, unusually precise and fine reverberation and liquid discharge pattern adjustments are obtained. Any desired discharge pattern, i.e., height and width of discharge, or discharge characteristic (size of discharge droplets and rate discharge pulsation due to reverberation) within the capacity of a basic structure of remarkable simplicity may be obtained. The result is that nozzles having almost any operating characteristic desired can be made rapidly and inexpensively to fulfill a wide range of uses and requirements.

Workers skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains will appreciate that the structures described above have been described merely for the purposes of example and that such structures can be altered or modified without departing from the invention. Therefore, the preceding description should not be regarded as limiting the scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:

l. A liquid discharge device comprising:

a. a body defining an inner chamber having ends spaced from each other by the length of the chamber;

b. an inlet opening to the chamber substantially at one end of the chamber and having an effective area substantially less than the mean transverse cross-sectional area of the chamber; and

c. an outlet tube having a tapered bore through the length thereof extending laterally of the chamber through the body and into the chamber and disposed so that one end of the bore communicates to the chamber between the ends of the chamber;

d. the outlet tube bore defining an outlet opening from the chamber to the exterior of the body, which outlet opening has a minimum effective area greater than the effective area of the inlet opening to the chamber.

2. The liquid discharge device of claim 1, wherein the area of the bore open to the chamber is less than the area thereof open to the exterior of the body.

3. The liquid discharge device of claim 2, wherein the bore has a portion of constant cross-sectional area adjacent the chamber. 

1. A liquid discharge device comprising: a. a body defining an inner chamber having ends spaced from each other by the length of the chamber; b. an inlet opening to the chamber substantially at one end of the chamber and having an effective area substantially less than the mean transverse cross-sectional area of the chamber; and c. an outlet tube having a tapered bore through the length thereof extending laterally of the chamber through the body and into the chamber and disposed so that one end of the bore communicates to the chamber between the ends of the chamber; d. the outlet tube bore defining an outlet opening from the chamber to the exterior of the body, which outlet opening has a minimum effective area greater than the effective area of the inlet opening to the chamber.
 2. The liquid discharge device of claim 1, wherein the area of the bore open to the chamber is less than the area thereof open to the exterior of the body.
 3. The liquid discharge Device of claim 2, wherein the bore has a portion of constant cross-sectional area adjacent the chamber. 